Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Hayyyyy There

I had a really fun post (with pictures!) planned for today all about Ruby's massage on Monday (which she LOVED), but as always, life interfered.

I don't understand the sorcery that is 83 degree weather on November 1. I feel like we'll be paying for it with a polar vortex or some shit this winter.

Sunday afternoon our hay guy called and asked if we wanted 100 more square bales. We already have plenty for the winter (especially since I downsized horses earlier this year), but DH's attitude is that you can never have too much hay. So Tuesday I took off work early, trailered Cinna over to the barn for her farrier appointment (we're not going to talk about that, I nearly murdered her), and then rushed back to pick up the flatbed and head to the hay field. Picking up hay is INFINITELY easier with three people (one to drive, one to buck bales, and one to stack), but DH and I have done enough hay together that we have a decent system worked out for when it's just the two of us. We cleared the field of 106 square bales in under 40 minutes (minus the time I was being harassed by turkeys and got nothing done).

The couple that hays together, stays together. Or kills each other. It can go either way.

No homicide today, we had very nosy witnesses.

Seriously, the nosiest.

What the actual fuck guys?

I didn't take pictures when they chased me carrying hay bales because I might have been screaming like a little girl.

Without opposable thumbs, you're not much help turkey.

Bale inspectors.

I've never laughed so hard in my life. After I made sure the turkey talons didn't scratch poor Kate's hood!

We rushed home and managed to get all the bales up in our hay shed before dark. November 1st is probably the latest I can ever remember doing hay. This is also probably the fullest our hay shed has ever been this late in the season (we're still feeding last year's hay), and we are wintering the fewest horses we've had since 2010. Not really sure how all those things work together, but there you go. Having hay put up is better than money in the bank for me, especially remembering how much we scrambled in 2012 when Missouri had a horrible drought (which was also when I had the MOST horses -- I think there were 8 at our house then). It's comforting to know that my horses can literally have all the hay they can eat, especially with two geriatric boys who require some extra TLC.

Super dark and blurry but it's stacked to the rafters in a few spots and almost all the way to the front! (It's 32 deep x 18 tall x 20 wide, if that gives you any perspective).

There is nothing better than a full hay barn. We got a semi-load from Canada during the 2011 drought... it was literally stacked up past the rafters and took up most of the barn aisle too. The boys all though they had died and gone to heaven!

Who needs space to walk when you can fit hay bales! 😉 My guys are a little put out right now that I'm still feeding them last years hay -- they stood at the fenceline and pathetically stared as we unloaded this, so I caved and tossed them a new bale in their hay feeders this morning, lol

We went in halves on the flatbed with my mom specifically for hay and it's paid for itself like 10 times over! We used to do the hay in a horse trailer method too, haha. They were funny but also a little creepy (I don't like turkeys lol)

I don't mind pet birds (parakeets, parrots, whatnot), and I tolerate our chickens, but I do NOT like turkeys. When I went to take a picture of these when they first showed up I walked away and they started chasing me. I definitely started screaming. Ughhh.

About Me

I'm a 30s college graduate living in the Midwest with an amazing husband, a herd of horses, and a pack of dogs. My interests are dressage, photography, and most recently, blogging. I have a self-deprecating sense of humor and the vocabulary of an octogenarian. My life's motto is taken from my favorite book series: Hope strengthens, fear kills.
In case it wasn't glaringly obvious, the title of my blog is tongue-in-cheek.